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Biography |
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Joerg Vienken has a degree in Chemical Engineering from the Technical University of Darmstadt and a Doctoral Degree in Biophysics & Engineering from the Technical University of Aachen (RWTH), both in Germany. After working as an Associate Professor at the Institute for Biotechnology at Würzburg University, he is now working in the medical device industry for more than 25 years with focus on medical device technology, biomaterials and artificial organs.Until moving to his recent position as Vice President "BioSciences" at Fresenius Medical Care in Bad Homburg, he was Head of the Department of Scientific Services at Akzo Nobel Membrana, Wuppertal, both in Germany. Jörg Vienken has authored/co-authored more than 250 publications and 5 books with subject to biological and artificial membranes, biomaterials, biocompatibility and nephrology issues, as well as on Artificial Organs. He is member of the Editorial Board of several scientific journals dedicated to Biomaterials, Artificial Organs and Medical Device Technology. Prof. Jörg Vienken currently serves as President of the International Federation for Artificial Organs (IFAO). He also serves as an honorary lecturer at the Technical Universities of Aachen and Ilmenau, at the private European University for Applied Sciences "EFF" in Idstein (all in Germany), at the Danube University in Krems, Austria, and as a Professor at the International Faculty of Artificial Organs (INFA). He is Member of the Academic Leibniz-Sozietät in Berlin, Germany.
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Abstract |
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Membranes are the key elements of detoxification devices applied for artificial kidneys, liver support devices and oxygenators. Purification of blood during the therapy of kidney or liver failure is achieved through filters with capillary membrane. In the case of dialysis and liver failure therapy, they are usually made from hydrophilic polymers or from hydrophilic polymer blends. In contrast, in oxygenators, capillary membranes are made from hydrophobic polymers to provide an easy passage of.oxygen and carbondioxide. These membranes represent one of the success stories of medical device application in recent years. When John Abel in the United States and Georg Hass in Germany started to investigate the application of membranes for the treatment of kidney patients at the beginning of the 20. century, they would have never dreamt that nearly a hundred years later in 2009 about 1,7 million kidney patients owe their lives to dialysers of which more than 180 million pieces containing capillary membranes including about 450 million km of capillary membranes have been sold in 2007. Modern capillary membranes for the use in dialysers and for liver failure therapy are currently fabricated mainly from so-called synthetic polymers, such as polysulfone (PSu), polyamide (PA), polymethyl¬methacrylate (PMMA) or polyacrylonitrile (PAN). Polymers used for dialysis membranes should allow for a membrane formation process to achieve low- and high-flux configurations, such that all modern treatment modalities (HD, HDF, HF) can be performed. Following the investigations of the last decades, a membrane polymer must also show a series of biocompatibility pattern with regard to blood coagulation, cell stimulation and vasoactive properties as well as offering adsorptive capacities for bacterial products such as endotoxins. Due to the typical chronic and longterm application of biomaterials used mainly in dialysis, the amount of extractables (oligomers, sterilants, etc) must be reduced to the lowest acceptable limit and, if not avoidable, should not induce adverse acute (allergic) reactions. As there is still no general guarantee for rinsing fluids void of exo- and endotoxins, e.g. in dialysis, those polymers should be preferred which offer a considerable adsorptive capacity for such impurities. New developments target at having wearable devices as well as membranes which play an interactive role in the treatment system, e.g. by showing interactions with administrable drugs. |
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